What drives brand decisions in Québec

May 08, 2008

When it comes to advertising to children in Quebec, outside the box thinking can get you outside the law.

Advertising to children under 13 years old is illegal in Quebec. It’s a law most Quebeckers support. There are strict guidelines enforced by Quebec’s consumer protection branch and there is an effective complaint mechanism in place. Responsible marketers follow the guidelines by crafting their messages and adapting their media strategies accordingly.

Yet once in a while we hear marketers claim their ignorance after campaign posters show up in daycare centers and schools.

There was last year’s Igor campaign by Saputo for its line of muffins under the Vachon brand showing up in daycare centers. As part of the campaign, which featured an animated gorilla named Igor, more than 1,000 day-care centres in Quebec, Ontario, and the Maritimes received CDs with original music, discount coupons, posters featuring the Igor character, as well as loot bags for children containing a booklet on the history of the character. It contravened article 248 of the province’s Consumer Protection Act, which forbids advertising to children under 13.

Now there’s ConAgra’s campaign for POGO (quite possibly the world’s best corn dog according to the company website) showing up on or near school grounds. If the ultimate objective is to stretch a small budget to get maximum visibility by stirring up a controversy, ConAgra got the return on investment it hoped for. Campaign posters showed up on or near school grounds, skateboard parks, etc. They’ve apparently been taken down since.

But the real “out of the box” thinking here is creative thinking… The Pogo campaign is built around a metaphor. Pogo, in the campaign, is referred to as “ boutte” (Quebec slang for a man’s sexual organ). Nice idea. I wish I had sat in on that creative presentation.

You should read Konrad Yakabuski’s piece in today’s Globe & Mail’s Report on Business for the details. Globe & Mail

Yakabuski quotes ConAgra’s marketing representative: “It's an irreverent, humorous campaign that's relevant for the target,” Andrew Armstrong, ConAgra Canada's vice-president of marketing, explained in an interview. “The whole idea is making fun of being a man. We, well, not capitalized, but tried to tie that in to the relevance of our product. It's like: Being proud of your Pogo and being proud of yourself.”

Perhaps it’s relevant to teenagers and a food product. I don’t have their insights into the Pogo eating experience and penises. But the disturbing part comes from ConAgra’s website which Yakabuski quotes in his article: “ConAgra Foods has a special responsibility to schoolchildren to provide healthy options and accurate nutritional information”. Schoolchildren? I guess they mean high schoolchildren. POGO is also pitched as a “hearty after-school snack” on the company’s website. Whatever the actual target group definition, they’re on thin ice with this campaign.